On the Friday morning before our trip to Sevilla and Granada, Jess and I woke up before the sun to make the 20 minute trek to the IES Abroad Center. The night before I had gone a bit crazy with the packing and ended up carrying over half my weight in the duffle around my shoulder. I think I packed enough clothes for a week for a 3-day trip.
The second the bus started moving, everyone seemed to fall asleep, and the majority of the ride was a much-needed nap time. When we finally arrived in Sevilla, everyone was (fairly) well-rested and ready for the adventures that lay ahead.
We were given a tour of the cathedral in Sevilla, Catedral de Santa María de la Sede (or Cathedral of Saint Mary of the See). This cathedral is the largest cathedral in the world and the third largest church. Before the cathedral was built, the site had been a mosque. In fact, the tower of the cathedral was actually the minaret of the mosque! The tower also does not have any stairs, just ramps. Apparently this is because people would ride on horseback to the top when it was a mosque and they needed to announce prayer times.
The cathedral was honestly breathtaking. The details in the architecture are incomparable to what we see in modern architecture today. An interesting fact we learned was that the tomb of Christopher Columbus is located there as well, although the jury is still out as to whether I actually believe that it is the real body.
The view from the top of the tower showed all of Sevilla, and the way up to the top was the best excercise I have had since the Camino!
After the tour of the cathedral, we were able to explore Sevilla on our own. Above are various pictures of our time wandering the streets. My favorite location was definitely the Plaza de España. It was also the location of scenes from two Star Wars movies: Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999) and Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (2002). Sevilla is definitely worth the visit!
Micaela Ferguson
<p>My name is Micky Ferguson and I am a rising junior at Claremont McKenna College studying Government and Philosophy. I am from Pasadena, California, which, in 2014, was named the Snobbiest City in America. But I will be the first to say that the people who conducted the survey were probably just jealous because they know that we are better than them. I have a passion for photography, video production, and puns. I love taking portrait photography, but I like taking candid photos more - I think that photos tell more of a story when they aren't posed.</p>
